


Go Hard or Go Home

by Daiya_Darko



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-16
Updated: 2012-11-16
Packaged: 2017-11-18 18:37:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/564171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daiya_Darko/pseuds/Daiya_Darko
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fury goes deep undercover, and Natasha is the only one who knows.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Go Hard or Go Home

**Author's Note:**

> I just needed some well-written Fury-centric fic and he and Tasha are my brotp. Call it a day.

"I'll go."

"No!" Tony almost shouts, but Nick cuts him off with the wave of a hand.

"Shut it, Stark. If they want me, they can have me." As Nick begins removing his gun holsters, Tony continues arguing.

"You don't have to do this! We've already lost enough people; dammit, Nick, we can't lose you too!"

Nick is silent as he allows the HYDRA agents to sweep him for hidden weapons. He knows what he's doing, even if no one else knows. This is the only way that SHIELD will be able to get the information they need, even if it comes at the cost of his life.

Nick makes eye contact with Natasha and gives her a curt nod. She's the only one who knows and the only one with a direct link to what he can see. The contact lens in his good eye doubles as a camera that transmits data, and a mic hidden in his eye patch transmits sound.

"I'm sure Agent Hill will succeed me just fine; I have faith in her," Nick says quietly as he's escorted out. He's afraid. There is a good chance he's not going to make it back from this, but that's okay because at least he'll die in the line of duty.

That's a chance he swore he'd take when he agreed to be the public director of SHIELD. Now, he's finally stepping up to the task.

The shock up his back stuns him, and Nick collapses as his muscles fall limp. He can hear Tony yelling from behind him, no doubt being held back by the others, and Nick has to shut out the sound as he's dragged away.

"We'll save you, Nick! Don't you dare die on me, you stubborn bastard!"

Nick could almost chuckle. It's amazing when Tony decides to show emotion for people.

Nick is dropped onto the cold floor of a cargo area, but he can't see anything. There's only the sound of machinery and orders being yelled as the jet prepares for takeoff.

"Well, Director Fury. I think it's quite admirable of you to take the fall when one of your underlings would have sufficed," a cold, female, disembodied voice says from above.

"If you want something done right, you've got to do it yourself."

"And what exactly is it that you're planning to do?"

"Shut you down."

A person steps forward from the darkness into the dim light, and Nick can barely make out the silhouette of Viper as she crouches in front of where he lies.

"It's such a shame you're so adamant about fighting against me. I'm sure there's a place for you here amongst my ranks."

"I'm sure, but even the United States Air Force looks less dorky in their dress uniforms than your men in their work clothes." Nick smiles when he senses her clear offense, but his smile quickly turns to a pained grimace when she strikes him in the eyebrow.

"You'd be wise to hold your tongue, director, unless you want to join your friend Coulson."

"How do you know -- "

"You're not the only one who has been making friends, Fury. Be mindful of that." Viper rises, and in a blink, she's gone from sight.

Nick tries to swallow, but his mouth is dry.

\--

The nights and days blur into one string of broken consciousness. The times Nick is awake are the worst, because it usually means he's being tortured. The first week was rough, a test of his years of training.

The second week is worse, his strength beginning to crack.

The third week, Nick cries out when his rib is cracked, and the sound of pain is all his tormentors need to re-energize their attempts to break him.

"What are the access codes for file HY-DR4-CS?" Viper screams, but Nick shakes his head.

He's dunked into a tank of water then pricked repeatedly with needles. He flinches, squirming to avoid the touch, but the more he moves, the harder it is to hold his breath. He's pulled out, only to hear, "Shock him."

Nick's eyes slam open, and frantically, he tries to fight his way lose. The guards hold him, beating him into submission, and when Nick stops fighting, he sees a familiar shadow fall in front of him.

"Ah, Director Fury. It's been quite a long time."

Nick is too exhausted to say anything, but fixes Loki with the hardest glare he can muster.

"Right, I imagine you might still be sore over me killing your subordinate."

"He was my equal!"

"And yet you outranked him!" Loki sneers, face close to Nick's. "Killing him was the easiest thing I've ever done, and he died full of ridiculous ideals."

"He died like a hero," Nick growls through clenched teeth.

"Heroes don't exist, director; only fools who believe in the causes they willingly die for." Loki signals the guards, and Nick is dragged over to a chair. He's strapped in uncomfortably tight, and his shirt is torn open as plastic sensors are stuck to his skin.

"I find this to be very familiar, director," Loki chuckles, toying with the switch on a metal box.

"Ant," he says, flicking the machine on. "Meet boot."

Volts of electricity rip through Nick's body as he's electrocuted. At first, he tries to hold in the screams of pain, but as the voltage increases, he loses control of his body and tears fall from his face. The machine stays on for whoever knows how long, but when it turns off, Nick is barely awake, and he can smell singed hair.

"Right. I think he's done for today," Loki says casually. "Take him back to his cell."

Nick falls unconscious as his restraints are released.

\--

Six months of torture pass, and Nick is no longer affected by any of them. Physical pain doesn't even begin to register, and his tongue is too swollen from biting to speak.

"You're stronger than I previously thought, director," Viper says when she visits him one day. "I have hit you with everything I own, and still you do not crack. You hold your secrets dear, and you no longer even flinch." Viper reaches out to touch Nick's face, but he snatches her hand and slams it to the wall.

"Don't touch me," he chokes out, voice cracked from a lack of use.

Viper grins and stands, yanking her hand free. "You still show fight. Good. I want you to work for me, then. I could use you."

"I'd sooner shove my fist up Loki's ass and use him like a puppet."

Viper cackles, but Nick remains stoic.

"I've always liked you. Come, we'll find some clothes fitting for such a...strong character."

"I didn't agree."

Viper grabs him by the throat and lifts him off the bed. "You don't have a choice. I will kill you and everyone you love."

"I don't love anyone."

"All the more reason to join me then." She releases him, and Nick stumbles forward, catching himself on the thin mattress.

"If I join you, I'm not killing any of my agents."

"Fair enough. You don't have to get your hands dirty at all. In fact, you can be in charge of planning our next mission."

"Which is?"

"Kill Captain America."

Nick swallows and nods. "I can do that."

\--

Natasha can't help but worry. She knows what the plan is, she knows how to prepare, but it doesn't change the fact that she no longer can tell if Nick is acting or not. He joined HYDRA begrudgingly, but as the months carried on, he began showing signs of sadism that she had never seen before. Watching Nick pal around with Loki twisted her stomach disconcertingly, and the way he spoke about the Avengers made her uncomfortable.

But he never spoke about her. Natasha wonders if avoiding his memories of her made his performance easier to believe for himself.

It doesn't matter; she now has a good idea of the layout of HYDRA's schematics, the amount of security, and the access codes for most of the areas. She knows what their plans are, including the one to kill Steve.

The mission went according to plan, but now, Natasha isn't sure if it's even a mission anymore. She has no way of getting in contact with Nick and asking how he's doing. She watched him get tortured, heard him make sounds she had never heard anyone make before. All the same, she knew he would be okay.

_It's Nick_ , she thinks. _He can make it through anything_.

She's ready when HYDRA attacks, and already has Steve sent out the country on another mission with Hill.

In the midst of the fighting, Natasha catches a glimpse of Nick, dressed in a dark green trench coat. She wants to rush over to him, wants to ask him how he is and maybe even hug him, but she refocuses her attention on the men trying to kill her.

When she's done choking the last one out, Natasha runs down the hall to the control room, and skids to a stop when she sees Tony raise a hand at Nick.

"I can't believe you'd turn against us, Nick," Tony says quietly, and she can hear the sadness in his voice. "I was going to save you."

"Things have changed, Stark, and I never needed saving." Nick holds his hands above his head in submission, and Natasha takes the short window of opportunity to tackle Tony to the ground.

She makes eye contact with Nick, and his nod is all she needs to confirm that he's still on SHIELD's side.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Tony shouts, throwing her into the opposite wall. Natasha lands with a grunt and struggles to her feet in time to see Nick fleeing down the hall.

"Great, now he's gone!" Tony glowers and grabs Natasha. "Have you changed sides too? Should I go ahead and kill you? You don't exactly have the best history with SHIELD, after all."

Natasha pulls herself free and shoves Tony away. "There's a lot you don't know, Stark, and I wasn't going to let you kill him."

"How do you know I was going to kill him?"

"Because killers never stop; they just change methods." She sprints down the hall in the direction Nick went, desperate to catch up with him.

As she turns a corner, Natasha is yanked into a room and a hand covers her mouth. She begins to reach for her gun, but stops when Nick's voice whispers harshly, "Natasha, it's me!"

She relaxes completely, and when Nick lets her go, she throws her arms around his neck in an embrace.

"God Nick, I am so sorry about everything that happened."

He hugs her back, savoring the first affectionate contact he's had in almost a year. "I know, and it's okay. It's not your fault. You've been doing a great job and everything is going according to plan." He lets her go and pulls out a small flash drive. "There's more information on here than I can begin to explain. I'll be ready to go in three days."

"Can I tell the others?"

"Not until the minute before." Nick nods goodbye and exits the room, leaving Natasha alone with the fruits of their labor.

\--

When Nick returns, there's a definite tension in the air.

No one rejoices when he walks into the room, and he's met with unfriendly stares.

"Thank you for taking care of everything in my absence, Agent Hill," Nick nods to Maria, but she doesn't move.

"It's Director Hill."

Fury calmly folds his hands behind his back and stiffens. "Only for as long as I was gone."

"I'm not entirely convinced you left under duress."

The last nerves of Nick's composure snap, and he yells, "Do you know what I've just been through? I allowed myself to be taken and tortured endlessly for six months at the hands of our enemies just so I could get us the information we so desperately need. I couldn't tell anyone here except Agent Romanoff, because she's the only one who knows how to keep her goddamn mouth shut! She doesn't argue with me when I give orders, she doesn't diverge from what she's told, and she knows how to do her damn job. If you have a problem with what I did, Agent Hill, then might I suggest you go ahead and take a leave of absence? Because I will make sure the only job your ass can get is washing dishes at three in the morning at Denny's!" Nick grabs a thick folder off the table and shoves it in her hands. "In there is more intel than you could possibly hope to collect if you got on your knees in the HYDRA HQ and pulled your pants down. So if you think I haven't earned my spot back as director of SHIELD, then you can kiss my big, black ass. I don't care about your feelings toward the matter, agent. Know your place, and step down."

Visibly shaken, Maria steps aside and lays the folder back on the table. Nick nods and turns to face everyone else.

"Does anyone else have a problem with the way I choose to run things here, or does anyone else have any qualms they want to address?"

No one says anything, and Nick catches Natasha hiding a smirk as she turns her head down.

All in all, it was a successful mission.


End file.
